Gordon Finishes 18th at AMS and Moves to 11th In Points

ATLANTA, GA  - Jeff Gordon started the Kobalt Tools 500 at Atlanta in 5th, held strong in the top 10 during the first half of the race, dropped far back in the field after incurring a speeding penalty on pit road and rallied back to finish on the lead lap in 18th.  Gordon climbed up into the top 12 in points.  The Sprint Cup Series takes the next weekend off before heading to Bristol in two weeks.

JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 DUPONT/NATIONAL GUARD CHEVROLET - Finished 18th:
ON THE TIRES: "I think it's one of those things where when they come here and test, you expect them to build a tire that we can abuse and that we can race hard with. That obviously wasn't the case. There is a good chance we were too aggressive, but until we go back and analyze everything it's hard to say."
 
IS THERE ANYTHING YOU CAN DO DURING A RACE ONCE YOU HAVE THOSE PROBLEMS OR WHAT DID YOU TRY TO DO? "Slow down."
 
YOU JUST HAVE TO RUN A SLOWER PACE? "We actually freed the car up to get it off the right front and the right front got worse. So you've got to look at everything."
 
DID YOU SEE THE KESELOWSKI/EDWARDS INCIDENT? "No."